A 'not just another promotion' thread

To start off, I was recently notified of a promotion/raise which will be my biggest to date and put me over the goal that many shoot for on here, including myself...six figures before 30. It's exciting to say the least.

That said, this all happened in the same company within a few years, so it is possible to rise up in the ranks, but I feel there are a few major factors at play. Here are my thoughts on it:

The business and your role must be a financial producer (contractor/consultant/MSP), and not a consumer, but...
It is possible as a "consumer" (i.e. cost center) as pay scales directly with responsibility (i.e. to what extent you can make [or break] the business from a financial perspective)
Certifications are worth their weight in gold. The billing rate of a consultant who's not certified vs. an MCSE is night and day.
You must become adept to the business side of things. I'm working on this but luckily have a good knack for it. This extends to...
Communication is key. Know your audience and how to interact with them. You know you're doing a good job when every customer wants to hire you. Finally...
Never forget customer service and satisfaction. They are paying the bill and the reason you are employed. Always do your best, have a smile on your face, and give them the service they deserve.

I invite others for their opinions and input. This forum has been a wealth of information and a great community. I joined here when I started my official sys admin role a few years ago, and it's been a straight shot to the top from then. So, many thanks to all of you and cheers to future success

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Comments

bgold87

Congratulations man, one thing I notice about the over 100k threads are that every one of them mentions that you have to be a part of the business side. Not just understand it, but improve it, and once you get that the cash seems to flow.

iBrokeIT

Congrats on the huge achievement! How did you celebrate? What are your professional goals in the near term and next 10 years?

coffeeluvr

Congratulations on the promotion!!!

UnixGuy

Congratulations!! Great news

do you work for MSP/Service provider?

N2IT

Good for you!

I decided to forgo the certification thing all together and transitioned to the business side. It's a challenge because I am learn a lot of new concepts rookies would pick up on in the beginning but they can't automate solutions like I can nor manage a data warehouse.

Anyway I agree embed into the business and make money. Right now I am slated to jump to Procurement Manager in a few months, if everything goes as planned. ***This is from my boss.

instant000

Congrats on the promotion.

You're not kidding about the effects of a positive, encouraging environment like TechExams, that provides realistic, career-focused advice.

Have a nice day!

lsud00d

Thanks y'all!!

@bgold87, I've come to find out that it all comes back to business at some point. It sounds rather obvious as I type it but I've spent so much time focusing on getting my technical chops up to snuff that business is normally an afterthough and/or subconscious process. Aside from being a specialist or architect type role, it all starts to lean on business!

@iBrokeIT, nothing big for the celebration as it's been a busy few weeks but I am leaving for vacation tomorrow so I think I'll celebrate then! As far as professional goals...I suffer from JOAT syndrome/professional ADHD. It's hard to focus on one topic because I want to learn it all. I'd like to knock out the VCP and CCNA this coming year, then maybe CISSP or OCSP... who knows. In the short term I see myself increasing my technical acumen while moving towards a more managerial type role. I might dip into project management but I deal with PM's on a daily basis and they are basically cat wrangling so I'm not sure if I really want to go that direction...

@coffeeluvr and @UnixGuy, thanks

I work for a contracting/consulting firm.

@N2IT thanks for stopping by bro, I've been watching your transition and it seems like you're having a good time with it? I've been performing more business analyst type work as of late and I feel like I get the big picture while understanding the technical side of things...kind of a dual threat. This might be something I explore further.

@instant000, it is a great community isn't it?!

Thanks again!